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Council set to provide more
than 3,500 new homes by 2020
MORE than 3,500 new homes will be built
in Wirral by 2020; that’s the central pillar of a new housing strategy unveiled
by the Council.
Good quality housing which meets the needs of residents was one of the key
pledges made by Wirral Council in its:- ‘Wirral Plan 2020’. The
Council
recognises that having a safe and secure home is the most important thing to
local people and provides the foundation upon which successful and happy lives
are based.
In the new housing strategy; which will be considered by Cabinet on 18 July
2016;
the Council sets out its plan to provide the additional, quality housing that is
needed right across the borough. This includes building more affordable homes,
improving existing accommodation and providing more specialist accommodation,
such as supported living and extra care homes.
Cllr George Davies, Wirral’s Cabinet member for Housing and Community Safety,
said:- “As a Council we are committed to growing the local economy;
attracting new businesses and investment to the borough to create new jobs and
helping existing employers in the borough to grow and expand.
At the heart of this plan is a commitment to ensuring we have the right housing
and accommodation for people who live and work here, not just now, but in the
future too.
We have set ourselves an ambitious target of building 3,500 brand new homes in
Wirral by 2020. I don’t think there is a bigger priority for the Council over
the next few years and we aim to achieve our target by continuing to work
alongside partners and by encouraging and enabling developers to work with us.
The knock-on effect will be incredible; more people will live in Wirral, more
businesses will move and thrive here, homes will be safer, people will be
healthier and the borough will be more attractive.”
Another element of the housing strategy is a commitment and a pledge to improve
existing housing standards, including bringing more than 1,000 currently empty
houses back into use.
Currently around 1 in 4 private properties don’t meet the nationally defined
decent homes standard, with an even greater number of private rented homes
failing to come up to scratch.
While responsibility for standards in private sector housing lies very much with
homeowners and landlords, the local authority and partners have a role to play
in ensuring properties are maintained in a satisfactory manner, particularly
where vulnerable residents are concerned.
Improvements are already being made with initiatives such as the selective
licensing scheme proving successful in areas where there is a high proportion of
private rented accommodation and the strategy sets out how these can be
developed further over the next 5 years to make further progress.
Cllr Davies said:- “By 2020, we aim to have improved 2,250 private sector
homes and brought 1,250 empty properties back into use. We’ll achieve this by
building on the good relationships we have with landlords, residents and
agencies, but by also continuing to get tough on those who won’t make the
required improvements.”
The strategy also sets out how the Council will better support and protect the
most vulnerable members of the community. This includes providing 300 new extra
care homes by 2020 and working with thousands of vulnerable people to provide
accommodation that both supports their needs while helping them maintain their
independence.
It also sets out how the Council will work with others to reduce the level of
homelessness and support those who do find themselves in need. |
